


Beloved

by YaeL (thesometimeswarrior)



Category: Jewish Legend & Lore, Jewish Scripture & Legend, מדרש | Midrash, תורה | Torah, תנ"ך | Tanakh
Genre: Brothers, Family, Gen, Parshat Shemini, Peoplehood, Sanctification, Self-Sacrifice
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-10
Updated: 2016-04-10
Packaged: 2018-06-01 13:05:22
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 749
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6520927
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thesometimeswarrior/pseuds/YaeL
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>"And Aaron's sons, Nadav and Avihu, each took his pan, put fire in them, and placed incense upon it, and they brought before the Lord foreign fire, which He had not commanded them. And fire went forth from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, 'This is what the Lord spoke: I will be sanctified through those near to Me, and before all the people I will be glorified.'  And Aaron was silent." </i>
</p><p> </p><p> </p><p> </p><p>  <i>Rashi says: "But when did He speak? [It was when He said], 'And I will meet with the children of Israel, and it will be sanctified through My glory (בִּכְבוֹדִי) ' (Exod. 29:43). Do not read בִּכְבוֹדִי, 'through My glory,' but בִּמְכֻבָּדַי, 'through My honorable ones.'  Moses said to Aaron, 'Aaron, my brother! I knew that this House was to be sanctified through the beloved ones of the Omnipresent, but I thought it would be either through me or through you. Now I see that they [Nadab and Abihu] were greater than I or you!'" </i></p>
            </blockquote>





	Beloved

_"And Aaron's sons, Nadav and Avihu, each took his pan, put fire in them, and placed incense upon it, and they brought before the Lord foreign fire, which He had not commanded them. And fire went forth from before the Lord and consumed them, and they died before the Lord. Then Moses said to Aaron, 'This is what the Lord spoke: I will be sanctified through those near to Me, and before all the people I will be glorified.' And Aaron was silent."_

_Rashi says: "But when did He speak? [It was when He said], 'And I will meet with the children of Israel, and it will be sanctified through My glory (בִּכְבוֹדִי) ' (Exod. 29:43). Do not read בִּכְבוֹדִי, 'through My glory,' but בִּמְכֻבָּדַי, 'through My honorable ones.' Moses said to Aaron, 'Aaron, my brother! I knew that this House was to be sanctified through the beloved ones of the Omnipresent, but I thought it would be either through me or through you. Now I see that they [Nadab and Abihu] were greater than I or you!'"_

* * *

 

He finds his brother sitting outside the tent, legs crossed in a lotus position, staring out into the desert. “You also could not sleep?”

Nadav shakes his head silently. 

Avihu sits beside him. “Does Daddy know?”

“No,” says Nadav forcefully. “He cannot.”

“Why?”

“Because he will try to stop us.”

“You do not trust his faith?”

“It’s not about his _faith_ that I worry. His blood, too, is holy. Perhaps holier than ours. He too could be the consecration offering. And if he begs the Lord, or asks Uncle Moses to beg the Lord on his behalf, I worry the Lord will consent to take him instead.”

“That cannot be his burden,” says Avihu. 

“No,” agrees his brother. “The People must have their Priest, especially now that the Lord will have a dwelling place with them. And it should be one whom they already trust. And they trust Aaron.”

“And, Nadav, he is our _father_. Who has served the Lord since before the People left Egypt. We cannot allow him to have this death. He does not deserve this death!”

For the first time, Nadav turned to look at him. “Do _we_ deserve this, brother? Is it punitive? Does the Lord intend to make an example of us, to show what happens when one disobeys His commands?”

“We are not disobeying.”

“But the People will not know that. Nor will Daddy. Even Uncle Moses does not know that we were commanded to light our own fire. To all of them, it will seem that we are foolish—even _drunk_ —that we are mocking the Lord’s commandments. And then that we are punished for our disobedience.”

“Uncle Moses will come to recognize the truth,” says Avihu, laying a comforting hand on his brother’s shoulder. “We are holy. And through our offering of ourselves, the Lord will be sanctified and come to dwell among our People.”

“We do this for them?”

“Yes.”

“And for Him?”

“Yes. We do this so that the People will be able to carry Him with them always. So that they and He can become one.”

They sit in silence for several minutes, while Nadav lays his head on Avihu’s shoulder. 

Finally, he whispers, “I am afraid, brother.”

“I know,” says Avihu. “I am too.”

“Daddy will not be permitted to mourn us.”

“Why not?”

“The Priest cannot mourn the sacrifice,” says Nadav, simply.

“At least he does not have to be the slaughterer, like Father Abraham—”

“In the end, Father Abraham did not have to slaughter his son either.”

“The Lord is merciful,” says Avihu. “To not require fathers kill their sons, even for the glory of His name.”

“I—It is so selfish of me, brother, but I almost wish it could be Daddy. To sacrifice us. It would be easier.”

“No, it would only be easier for _us_. Not for him.”

Nadav sighs. “Of course. But I fear…I fear I will not have the strength, alone.”

“We will not have to do anything. The Lord will take us. We only need to present ourselves. Besides,” says Avihu, gripping his brother’s hand. “You will not be alone.”

“I am glad.”

“I am too.”

They sit in silence, without counting the time, until dawn. They are huddled together when they hear the shofar sound, rousing the camp and stirring their souls. 

With the rest of their People, they rise. The time has come to consecrate the Tabernacle.

**Author's Note:**

> I hope you enjoyed and found thought provoking!


End file.
